A conventional cartridge casing 10 is shown in FIG. 1. The cartridge assembly 10 comprises a casing 12 and a projectile 14. The casing 12 has a hollow section 16 which will contain propellant for displacement of the projectile 14. The casing 12 further comprises a head 18 at the end opposite to the projectile 14 which comprises a chamber 20 for a percussion cap, and a flash tube 22 for communication of an ignition charge from the percussion cap to the inside of the casing 12 and thus the propellant. The walls of the chamber 16 are formed integrally with the head 18. Such a cartridge casing may typically be formed of brass. This material choice has many advantages, for example, it is relatively easy to form into the desired shape. However, brass has demerit in that it is also relatively dense, and hence the casing 12 forms a relatively large percentage of the mass of the whole cartridge.
It is beneficial to reduce the mass of cartridges in order to reduce transport costs and mass burden on soldiers who carry them.
Hence a cartridge case, and a method of manufacture of a cartridge case which is of a relatively light weight construction is highly desirable.